In part two of our interview with head brewer Jerry Gnagy, we learn a little more about the St. Mathews location, how he got his start as a professional brewer, and how an award-winning beer can spring from even a disastrous beginning; before sampling a few of Kentucky’s State Parks.
Links for this episode:
BBC East in St. Matthews
3929 Shelbyville Road
Louisville, KY 40207
(502) 899-7070
(989) 891-0100
In part one of our interview with head brewer Jerry Gnagy, we get an overview of Bluegrass Brewing Company’s two locations, and their beer menu. Afterward, we head east to visit Appalshop, a multimedia arts center in the heart of Appalachia, to learn about that region’s rich musical heritage.
Links for this episode:
BBC East in St. Matthews
3929 Shelbyville Road
Louisville, KY 40207
(502) 899-7070
(989) 891-0100
Appalshop
91 Madison Ave
Whitesburg, KY 41858
(606) 633-0108
Butcher Hollow and Webb’s Grocery
1917 Miller’s Creek Road
Van Lear, KY 41265
This week we conclude our visit with Adam McCraith, former brewer at Alltech Lexington Brewing & Distilling Company, and talk about distribution, and their expansion into distilling. This will be the first time in history that malt whisky will be distilled in the state of Kentucky. Then we check out the ponies at Keeneland.
Travel by the Pint welcomes Alltech’s new master brewer, Ken Lee, who joined Alltech in March of this year.
It appears that Browning’s, a restaurant/brewpub located in Louisville, Kentucky, has closed. We found this bottle at a Louisville Liquor Barn if you want to see if you can still find a bottle on the shelves. Our thoughts:
SALLY: I bought this bottle on a summer ’08 trip through central Kentucky. Between then and now, the brewery closed. Too bad. Bourbon notes really come through strong in this brew, which is aged in white oak barrels. The description on the bottle describes notes of espresso and chocolate. Mmmm… definitely the espresso. If it’s chocolate its baker’s dark chocolate. There is very little sweet about the flavor. Rustic is more like it. Little light penetrates this dark beer, which boasts an extra thick, extra creamy malty head. If I have this again, which I guess is impossible, I’d definitely try pairing it with a bleu cheese steakburger with a side of cottage fries and Texas toast.
MICHAEL: I’ve enjoyed other bourbon barrel-aged beers from Kentucky before so I was anxious to give this one a shot. It’s pretty dark with some red highlights and a very aggressive tan head. A really thick froth that created a mountain landscape over the rim of my glass. The aroma really gives away the bourbon and oak but the flavor fell apart for me a bit. There’s a nice medium-bodied mouthfeel and the initial flavor is slightly sweet. Then a syrupy sweetness kicks in and a metallic tang (Funny — I just read what Sally said about there being very little sweetness. Maybe the bottle settled so we got different pours?). I don’t taste a lot of alcohol but I assume it’s a fairly high content. Maybe the tanginess masks it. I’m a little disappointed but my hopes were high given that I’ve enjoyed bourbon beers in the past. I think Kentucky Ale’s is maybe my favorite. This one isn’t bad, I just don’t care for the metal tang toward the end. It actually gets better further down the glass. Maybe the alcohol content is higher than I expected…
Sally’s rating: 6
Michael’s rating: 4.5 Ratings are 1 to 10 with 10 being the highest
